Springtime in Utoland
by lborgia88
Summary: It’s springtime in Utoland, and Joe has met a girl. But can this fledgling romance last, especially with Galactor about to unleash a new and deadly plot against the Science Ninja Team? Nothing, in Utoland, can ever be easy…


**Monday, March 21**

It was too early in the morning, a Monday, and raining heavily. Joe sat on his bed, feet pulled in close, resting his coffee mug on his knees, and stared blearily out the window. Not that there was much to see; he kept his trailer as isolated as he could from the others while still having quick access to the road out of the trailer park. Between the rain and the mist, very little was visible.

"Springtime in Utoland," he muttered in disgust, "I can't stand the crappy weather."

A car was appearing out of the mist, a small car that might have been new the first time Joe set foot in Utoland. That was not unusual in this place; what caught Joe's attention was the fact that its headlights were gradually dimming, its wipers slowing. Lights out, wipers stilled, the car died, right in front of Joe's window.

"Hah, glad I'm not you," he thought smugly, taking another swig of his coffee, "I hope you don't think I've got a phone you can use, 'cause I don't."

But then, the driver of the car emerged, first struggling with an ineffectual umbrella and then lifting the hood of the car to peer helplessly at the engine. She was tall and slender, with coltish legs beneath a dark skirt and jacket clearly intended for a downtown office and fawn colored hair cut bluntly in a chin length bob. Joe stared; only the appearance of Berg Katse could have surprised him more.

"Who is she, and what is she doing here?"

Whoever and whatever, this put the situation in an entirely different light. Rain be damned; he threw on a sweat jacket with a hood, stepped into his shoes, and went outside.

"Hi, it looks like you could use some help."

She looked up from the engine, revealing a young and pretty face, a face now exhibiting a blend of wariness and despair.

"It just died on me. I don't know why."

"I know why. It's your alternator."

Now confusion joined the blend.

"What does that mean? How do I start it again?"

"Look, get back in your car and put it in neutral. I'm going to push it over beside my car. You steer. Then I'll explain."

She looked unhappy with his answer, but she complied.

With her car now off the road, Joe came and tapped on her window. She rolled it down, slightly.

"Your alternator's dead, I'm sure of it. Your car isn't going to start again today-"

Now she was panicking.

"No! I _have_ to get to work. This _cannot_ happen now! If I'm late today-"

She looked too young to be a lawyer; a paralegal, or some kind of social worker maybe?

"Hey, it's okay. I'll give you a lift anywhere you need to be; we can go right now."

Now she looked appraisingly at Joe, in his soggy and unkempt state, and then at his trailer and car and was clearly not too impressed with or reassured by what she saw, but her face became a study in desperation prevailing over better judgment.

0000000000

"I'm Joe, by the way." He accelerated up a ramp and out onto the highway, increasing his wipers' speed to keep up with the pelting rain. She had not spoken since they'd left the trailer park."

"I'm Cate."

"Where exactly in the city am I taking you, Cate?"

"I need to go to the Geo-Tek building, at Main and Third."

She looked tense and uncomfortable; Joe cast about for something else to say.

"That's where you work?"

"Yes."

"What brought you to my neighborhood?"

"I live there."

"_Oh_." This was unexpected. As if sensing his surprise, she looked even more uncomfortable. She kept her face turned to her window.

"About your car–"

She glanced his way.

"How much do you think it might cost to get it repaired?"

Joe gave her an estimate. She stiffened, and closed her eyes. Were those tears, or were they vestiges of the rain? Clearly, something had to be done here.

"Well, you know, that's only if you take it to a regular shop. I race at the track and I know some guys who–"

"You race? What's your last name?"

"Asakura, Joe Asakura. Heard of me?"

It seemed she no longer feared he was a rapist or an axe-murderer.

"Yes, I know your name. You're the one who usually wins. When you show up, that is."

"Yeah, well, sometimes I've got other things going on…"

Her look suggested she suspected he missed races because he was too hung over to get out of bed or something equally irresponsible.

"Why is it," he thought, "that when I can't explain what I really do, women always assume the worst about me?"

"Are you a race fan?" She certainly didn't look the type.

"I'm a waitress at the Speedway Diner on weekends. I can hear the racing commentary while I'm working."

"_Oh_." This was unexpected too.

"About your car, I'll bet I can get a used alternator really cheap, and I can install it myself. There's some mechanics at the track who know me and they won't mind if I use one of their garage bays for a few hours. I mess with cars all the time; it won't be a problem."

She studied him. "Really?"

"Yes, I can do it. I don't mind at all."

"I'd pay you, of course."

"Whatever, that's fine. I'll need the key, though."

Finally, most of the tension left her face and shoulders. She dug in her purse and handed him the key.

"Thank you. You've really saved my neck today. I've worked as a receptionist at Geo-Tek for about a year, and I just landed a promotion to assistant to a vice president. Today's my first day, and it would have been terrible to tell him I'm going to be really late, or not able to come in. I can't afford to blow this; I'm surprised they selected me for this position in the first place."

"I'm not. Any guy would want you to be his assistant."

This, as it turned out, was the wrong thing to say.

"What? Do you think just because I live in a trailer park that I'm somehow 'sleeping my way to the top'? I work hard, I'll have you know! And-"

She was clearly very close to snatching her key back.

"Hey, I'm sorry. That's not what I meant-"

He pulled into the circle at the main entrance to Geo-Tek, a large, shiny modern-looking edifice at least twenty-five stories tall. The moment he stopped, she opened the car door.

"Don't park. I'll get out here."

"Um, Cate, let me pick you up after work, okay? It'll take at least a day to locate an alternator for your car, and the soonest I could get the installation done would be tomorrow afternoon. What time should I come back here to get you?"

She sighed, as one resigned to her fate. "Seven PM would be good."

"It's seven thirty now. Those are long hours."

"Yes, well, that's how _some of us _get ahead."

"Man, did I hit a nerve!" thought Joe, writing a number on a scrap of paper.

"I'll see you at seven, Cate. This is a number for an answering service. You can leave me a message there if anything changes."

"Thank you, Joe." She walked towards the entrance, squaring her shoulders before going inside.

"She's an ice princess, that one," he thought, "but she is tough. I'd rather infiltrate a mecha any day than spend nearly twelve hours in an office."

He pulled out of the circle, heading for an eight AM training session with the rest of the Science Ninja Team.

0000000000

Joe returned to Geo-Tek at exactly seven. It was pouring rain again, and getting dark. He peered out his window, examining the various wet umbrellas with bodies that were milling about.

But someone was opening his passenger door. It was Cate.

"Hi Cate. How'd your first day go?"

She stared upward, thinking.

"Okay, I guess. There's a lot I don't know, and I might be in over my head, but I have to make a go of it. I need this… How's my car?"

"I towed it over to the track today. This mechanic, Jimmy, he made a few calls for me, and found me a used alternator that'll work for your car. I can install it tomorrow and you'll be good to go."

"Do you have the time to do all this for me? You must have a job or something…"

"Let's just say I'm between jobs at the moment."

"Oh… I see. You know, there's this employment agency-"

"Oh great," thought Joe, "Now she wants to _help_ me."

"Look, don't worry about me," he said, "I'm fine."

"Living in a camping trailer, that's your idea of fine? You don't even have utilities hooked up!"

No one ever understood, not even his teammates.

"I've seen plenty of far worse places I could be, take my word for it. And being able to pick up and move on short notice can be handy."

Cate looked unconvinced, but she settled herself down further in her seat, clearly tired.

"I really appreciate your help Joe. You're… a good person."

She was quiet the rest of the way to the trailer park.

"Which way is your place, Cate?"

She directed him, but with a touch of reluctance.

They arrived in front of a small, old, but otherwise well-maintained mobile home. The fact that there weren't any weeds sticking up around it or beer cans lying around put it ahead of its neighbors. A couple of potted flowers even sat alongside the steps to the door.

"Just you here?"

"I live with my mother."

_Oh._ Again, this was unexpected.

"Well, I'll pick you up here tomorrow. Seven AM, right?"

"Yeah, I'll see you then, Joe." This time she actually gave him a small smile, but she approached her trailer door as if she were entering Geo-Tek, squaring her shoulders.

**Tuesday, March 22**

As he arrived at Geo-Tek to retrieve Cate, Joe saw her coming out, struggling not to drop a stack of large books that she was carrying. He hopped out of his car and made his way over to her, relieving her of several tomes -chemistry, physics, and geology textbooks- all with library stickers.

"Tell me you don't have to read all these."

"I'm working on grant applications for all sorts of scientific research projects, and I need to be more familiar with the terms they use and what they mean. So yes, if that's what it takes, I'm going to read all these."

Joe's memory briefly flashed back to the grueling science studies inflicted years ago on Ken, Jun, Ryu and himself, at Dr. Nambu's insistence, by tutors from the ISO.

"When are you planning to sleep?"

He received a "you just don't get it, do you?" glare in return. Cate's demeanor, however, softened considerably when they arrived at the track and she saw her car awaiting her, and even more so when he produced the key and started its engine. He could tell that her opinion of him had just gone up a notch.

"How much do I owe you for this?"

He told her the price for the used alternator.

"But what about labor –the time you spent fixing it, driving me around."

"Driving around and messing with cars is what I do for fun. Don't worry about it."

But she was worrying about it.

"I pay my own way in this world, Joe. I don't like being in anyone's debt."

Joe was glad now that he had refrained from mentioning that he had also changed the oil, refilled the wiper fluid, tuned up the brakes and done a coolant flush.

He looked at her anew. Despite what his teammates seemed to think, he rarely met or spent much time with women, and when he did, it was with the giggling, partying type. That just made it easier when, inevitably, things didn't work out. Just who was this strange girl with her Cinderella life, worrying and working constantly when she was clearly pretty enough to not have to? It was a puzzle.

"Fine, you can repay me for everything, but I don't want your money. Would you have dinner with me instead, this Friday? There's this little family-run Italian place, they know me well there, and it'll impress them to no end if I show up there with a date."

"And," he added teasingly, "They'll love feeding pasta to a skinny thing like you."

"Oh, shut up," was her response, but her mouth quirked slightly. Maybe it was lingering euphoria from seeing her car running again, but she actually turned to Joe, smiling.

"Okay, Joe, I'll have dinner with you. What time are you going to pick me up?"

**Thursday, March 24**

"Don't deal me in this hand. I want to check if I have any messages."

"That's Joe," remarked Ryu, "He wants to see if any girls have tried to reach him."

"Hmmph," said Ken, dealing to Ryu, Jinpei and himself.

For once, Ryu was right; there was a message from Cate.

"Hi Joe, it's Cate. If you get this message before eleven thirty tonight, call me at 555-GTEK, extension twelve. I hate to bother you again, you've done so much for me already, but I need another favor now."

Joe looked at the clock. It was a quarter to eleven.

"Geo-Tek, Cate speaking."

"Cate, it's Joe."

"Oh, _good_, it's you. I wasn't sure you'd check messages this late. I'm going to be at work _really_ late tonight. There's a research proposal that has to be submitted first thing tomorrow, and I was just told about it this morning. I won't be done for at least a few more hours."

"That sounds rough. What do you need me to do? Bring you a pizza for stamina?"

"I wish. Actually," she sighed, "I need you to go pick up my mother before midnight and take her home."

"_Oh_." _Nothing_ about Cate was predictable. "Okay, where is she?"

"She'll be at that bar near the track," said Cate, sounding embarrassed, "You know, the one called… Pit Stop."

"_Oh_." He tried to envision an older version of Cate at Pit Stop, a meat market if there ever was one, and couldn't quite manage it. But, who knows, maybe she worked there; after all, he would never have pegged Cate for a diner waitress.

"Um, your Mom's never met me. Will she accept a ride from a stranger?"

Now Cate sounded defeated. "She'll accept a ride from any guy who offers… She'll be drunk, Joe. It could be a… messy situation. Can you handle that? You have to get there before midnight. That's when the place closes on Thursdays."

Could he handle it? But, of course, she had no idea the level of "mess" he, the Condor, could handle.

"Don't worry, Cate. Finish your work, and I'll get your Mom home safely."

"I'm lucky to have met you, Joe."

"Nah, I'm the lucky one."

After hanging up the Snack J's phone, Joe turned back to the poker game.

"I have to go, guys, I'm cashing out."

"It _must_ be some girl," smirked Jinpei.

"It's getting pretty late, Joe," added Ryu pointedly, "Exactly what sorta girl are we talking about here?"

Joe laughed. "Trust me. It's _not_ what you think."

"Don't forget we have a training session tomorrow, Joe, eight AM sharp," said Ken, frowning.

"Look, I'll be there, alright?"

**Friday, March 25**

It was one thirty in the morning when Cate pulled up to her mobile home. Joe was sitting outside on the front steps, his legs stretched out in front of him.

"You didn't have to wait here for me, Joe. It's so late! Did it… did it go okay?"

"It was fine. I explained I was Cate's friend, and there was no problem. She said I was sexy, even–"

"Oh God," cringed Cate.

"She, um, sort of passed out on the ride back here though. But I got her into what I think is her bed. I guess she's still sleeping. I looked in on her twenty minutes ago and she seemed okay."

Cate collapsed on the step beside Joe, holding her head in her hands, not speaking. This was probably his cue to leave, but he had a feeling that if he sat there long enough she would say more. There had to be a story behind all this.

"It wasn't always like this," she said after a while, lifting her head and gazing into the distance, "We used to live in a house, on a nice street, with trees-"

"White picket fence?"

"No, but we did have a golden retriever," she replied with a bitter chuckle.

"What happened?"

"My Dad was killed in a car accident two years ago, when I was seventeen, and Mom went to pieces." She was speaking quietly. "Everything fell apart. I was trying to keep it together, trying to finish high school. I still thought, then, that I'd be able to go to university. Mom, she started drinking, gambling, spending money on all sorts of crazy crap. She'd never been really… strong but Dad had taken care of her, taken care of _everything_. Without him…"

"I'm sorry, Cate."

"Yeah, well, my brother couldn't handle things and he took off, the bank foreclosed on our house, and I found out we had a ton of debt, courtesy of Mom."

"Right after graduation, I managed to get a job as a receptionist at Geo-Tek -you know, answering phones, greeting people, that sort of thing. Between that and my job at the diner, I could just afford this old mobile home."

"As for Mom, working weekends in the Speedway Diner's kitchen is about all the gainful employment she can handle, and I can keep an eye on her there. Thursday is payday; she walks there, gets her check, such as it is, and heads straight for Pit Stop. By midnight she's out of money and, well, you saw her…"

She sat up abruptly, as one who realizes they've said too much, and glanced nervously at Joe. "Don't you dare pity me," was the message conveyed.

"Now, with my new position, though, I'm making a lot more money." Now she sounded grimly determined. "If it all goes well, in a year or so I'll be able to get us out of here. I _have_ to get us out of here. I _hate_ this place. It does nothing but remind me, every day, of everything I've lost. I _have_ to take care of things, and make it all right again-"

"I think maybe you're taking too many burdens on yourself, Cate."

Once again, he had said the wrong thing.

"Oh, and what do _you_ think I should do? Not _all_ of us can live as we please, no responsibilities, working when we_ feel_ like it, you know?"

"Hey, don't get mean! I'm just trying to tell you that I… I worry about you, okay?"

She was silent for awhile.

"I can't figure you out, Joe," she said shaking her head, "Why are you here?"

"Here? It's different for me. You lost everything and you want it back. I lost everything too, once, but I came here wanting to be someone who has nothing to lose. There's a kind of… clarity that way; it keeps you on track, keeps you focused."

"Focused on what? What are your plans? You can't honestly want to stay here forever."

"I want revenge. I want to destroy Galactor," thought Joe. But he couldn't very well give _that_ as his reply.

"Hey, I've learned that life is unpredictable. For all I know, I could be dead by this time tomorrow. You ever heard the saying 'If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans?'"

She sniffed. "I prefer 'the Gods help those who help themselves.'"

"Okay, fine. Here's my life story. I'm nineteen years old too. When I was eight, I saw my parents get murdered practically right in front of me. I ended up here in Utoland with a strange, forty-something bachelor, who I barely knew, for a guardian. But I got my first car, the one I've got now, a few years ago, and she is a _fast_ machine."

Joe paused for a moment, considering his words.

"Racing, pushing the limits of speed, testing myself, risking the danger… it feels completely _right_ to me, it's actually… _comfortable_, if that makes any sense. It's what I live for. Here, I've got my car, the track, and a place to sleep that's out of the rain. I've learned to adapt to whatever fate throws at me, and I don't need or want too much else."

"Not until Galactor is no more," he thought to himself.

Cate just stared at him, but somehow Joe got the feeling that her opinion of him had, maybe, gone up another notch. Yet he felt suddenly… exposed. He never told girls this much about himself; what had made him tell it all to Cate?

He stood up, and she rose to her feet as well, a bit unsteadily.

"That's enough philosophical debate for one night. It's late and you need to get some sleep. We have a date tonight, remember?

"And I have a damned eight AM training session," he added silently.

"I'll pick you up here at seven thirty PM, if that's okay."

Cate nodded sleepily, and for a rare moment she looked completely unguarded. Joe, not really knowing why, found himself putting his arms around her. Was it that she was somehow like himself, another loner with a mission? Instead of shrugging him off, though, she allowed it and he held her for a moment before dropping his arms down to briefly touch her hands.

0000000000

Cate gave Joe a quick head-to-toe examination, seemingly surprised at his dress shirt, crisply-pressed pants and well-shined shoes.

"Wow, you clean up well."

"What?" He gave a slight smirk, "did you think I'd be in jeans and a t-shirt?"

Of course, what she didn't know was that the jeans and t-shirt in question lay in a bag in the trunk of his car, just in case. Joe had learned the hard way that Galactor made no concessions to his personal life when scheduling their mecha attacks. Cate, instead of one of her armor-like dark suits and high-necked blouses, was wearing a dress with a wide, nearly off the shoulder, neckline.

All eyes turned towards them as they entered the cozy restaurant, and they were seated immediately at a candle-lit table in a quiet corner. Gianni, the waiter, winked at Joe, before disappearing and returning with a bottle of Sangiovese that Joe knew he couldn't really afford and also knew he wouldn't see on the check.

"It's good to be Italian," he thought.

As if by an unspoken agreement to avoid the heaviness of the previous night's conversation, Cate talked mostly about her job and Joe about an upcoming race.

"They're working on an alloy that can conduct electricity better, and with less resistance, than copper but that will be cheaper to produce. My boss, he thinks that the metallurgy department will have the final little glitches figured out soon. Mmm, this gnocchi is wonderful…"

"My, aren't we just on the cutting edge of science now."

"I don't know about 'cutting edge'. I think there are other classified projects that I don't get to hear anything about. It still amazes me everyday that I'm working with such brilliant people."

"It's Utoland's biggest race, next weekend, and I've actually raced enough this year that my points qualify me to enter. If I could land the first place winnings in that one, I'd be set for _many_ months to come. Even second, third or fourth place would be really sweet. But it always attracts drivers from all over the place, and a lot of them are top notch, so it's a long shot for me."

"I'll be at the diner all weekend and it's practically at the track. They usually show the races on the TVs inside, and on my breaks, I'll come out to cheer you on."

Leaving the restaurant, arm-in-arm with Cate, Joe momentarily considered taking her to the Snack J, until he envisioned the friendly-but-awkward efforts at small talk from Ken, the friendly-but-intense scrutiny from Jun or the puerile teasing from Jinpei and Ryu that they would likely encounter.

Instead, he opted for a moonlit stroll through Utoland's nearby central park, followed by a sojourn on a secluded bench near a fountain that featured a circle of marble nymphs pouring water from amphorae. For once, it wasn't raining and the newly opened flowers scented the air while the fountain trickled soothingly.

"This," Joe thought ruefully, "is the part where we're supposed to start making out."

With her hair shining in the dim light, with her bare shoulders and neck, Cate did look very alluring and Joe did very much want to kiss her, but somehow he knew that it was too soon to do anything like that. She looked so relaxed, resting her head against his shoulder and listening to the water music; he didn't want to do anything to risk the return of her aloof and mistrustful defenses. She looked relaxed, she looked peaceful…

"Wait just a minute," thought Joe, "She looks _asleep_!"

A tentative little nudge, receiving no response, confirmed what he suspected.

"This is _not_ the part where you fall asleep," thought Joe even more ruefully, as he tried to remember how many times her wineglass had been refilled. But he contented himself with reaching for her hand and holding it in his as he settled himself more comfortably on the bench, watching her sleep.

**Saturday, April 2**

"G2 to G1."

"G1 here. How'd the big race go?"

"It could _not_ have gone better."

"What? You won?"

"Hey! Don't sound so surprised!"

"Come on, _you_ didn't think you'd win."

"Just call it my lucky day!"

"I'm glad for you, man. That's great!"

"Well, you made it possible. What did I miss today?"

"You missed absolutely nothing. We escorted a transport plane from a mine in Inderia to the ISO airfield here, without incident. I told you it would be a useless mission. Even Dr. Nambu wasn't really expecting any trouble; he was just being extra cautious. Apparently whatever was mined at that place is intended for some top secret ISO project."

"And he doesn't know you let me play hooky?"

"Nope, the one time he contacted us, I said you were in the back room."

"Thanks, Ken. You don't know what this means to me."

"Oh, I think I do. But now we have to pray he doesn't see the sports section in tomorrow's paper-"

"Shit! I didn't think of that!"

"Relax! He's at the Crescent Base and says he's going to stay there a few days."

"Thank God… Wow, there is a _serious_ crowd waiting here."

"You're still in your car?"

"Well yeah, I just finished the race."

"Well, don't let me keep you from your horde of admirers."

"Really. Hey… thanks again. I'll see you tomorrow."

"That you will. Eight AM training session, no excuses!"

"Look, Ken, you do realize I'm on to you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You schedule our sessions at the crack of dawn because you want me to be groggy, so that when we spar, I won't kick your ass every single time."

"Hah! Eight AM is _hardly_ the crack of dawn–"

"Speak for yourself–"

"-and I schedule our sessions then so that Jun still has time to open the Snack J for the lunch crowd."

"Tomorrow is Sunday, Ken."

"Just be there! G1 out."

"Count on it. G2 out."

0000000000

Finished, at last, with the race officials, photographers, journalists, fellow drivers and fans, Joe made his way in the direction of the Speedway Diner. Cate, however, had spotted him first and came running out, still in her uniform.

"Joe! Congratulations, that was amazing! I saw nearly the whole thing. I can't believe you're not _dead_, but that was amazing."

"Thanks, I can't quite believe it myself. Are you done your shift?"

"Not for a few more hours."

"Look, there's this party tonight. The track crowd, every year they have a party after this race at that lake that's in the woods not too far from here. I usually skip out, but now this year, I'm sort of the guest of honor and I need to make an appearance. Would you like to come with me? There'll be a cook-out, a bonfire, beer, people bring guitars, and there'll be singing."

"It sounds a bit wild."

"Well, we can leave before the drunken skinny-dipping starts-"

"What!"

"Just kidding… I think. But will you come?"

"Okay, I'll go with you. But how do I get there?"

"Meet me at my trailer around eight. You can't get to the lake by car, but I know where there's a path to it through the woods from the trailer park."

0000000000

"_That_ was fun," declared Joe.

"Yes, I was impressed by your rendition of 'We Are the Champions' with the lyrics_ entirely_ changed to first person singular –very inventive."

"Thank you. It seemed appropriate."

Joe and Cate were picking their way along the path through the woods, with the aid of a small flashlight. In the distance behind them, the sounds of the party at the lake –the laughter, the singing- could still be heard and the bonfire's dull glow still followed them faintly.

"Now, if you had only taken my suggestion and tried–"

"I told you, Joe! I _can't_ sing."

"Okay, okay… Hey, thanks for coming with me tonight. Things like this aren't really my scene, so it was nice to have you there with me."

"I'm glad you invited me, I really am. I guess I don't have a lot of fun in my life."

"That's an understatement. You're always working or studying, you don't get enough sleep–"

"I had fun tonight."

"I'm glad you enjoyed the party."

"It wasn't so much the party… It was being with you. I have fun with you."

Joe flashed her a quick smile and reached for her hand. It had truly been a great day for him. Still flushed with victory, Cate at his side, the dark spring air in the woods surrounding them was alive with the scent of fertile earth, fresh leaves, rebirth… potential. Just at that moment, the world seemed magical, and all things, possible.

Just at that moment, the sky opened up and rain poured down.

"Damn it, I _hate_ this time of year! Come on, Cate, we'd better run for it!"

0000000000

Bursting into his trailer with Cate at his heels, Joe went straight to a cupboard and began rummaging for towels. Finding one, he reached back and handed it to Cate. Taking another for himself, he pulled off his drenched t-shirt, tossing it into a dish pan, and attempted to dry his hair.

Something wasn't right here; removing the towel from his head, he checked to see how Cate was faring. Other than taking the proffered towel in her hand, she hadn't moved. The darkness of the trailer was relieved only by a nightlight, but it was enough for Joe to see that Cate was staring at him, water droplets on her face, rivulets on her neck, still breathing heavily from their mad dash through the rain.

"Hey, I'm sorry I made you run like that, I should have realized…" He set his towel down.

Coming closer, he lifted hers and began to dry her face and hair, as gently as he could. Her eyes, darkened in the dim light, never left his as he brought the towel lower, pressing it to her body, trying to draw the water from her shirt. A wave of both aching tenderness and desire, unlike anything he had ever felt, washed over Joe. Her eyes drew him in. He had to close the space between their bodies. He had to caress her lips briefly with his…

Yes?

She trembled, but sought his mouth with her own, his body with her hands.

Yes.

"Why do you have to be so beautiful?" she whispered moments later, tracing the muscles of his back with her fingers.

"That's _my_ line," he answered softly as he embraced her fully, drawing her into a deeper kiss.

Towel, clothes… they were barriers demanding removal. To skin still damp from the rain, Joe's bed sheets were cold. Cate shivered, so he covered her body with his own, sharing his warmth, sharing everything he could: intimacy, pleasure, release. She accepted his offerings and gave her own in return, back and forth.

Far into the night, Joe found himself, once again, watching her sleep beside him as the rain continued to fall outside. He carefully slid a finger down her cheek, pushing a lock of her disheveled hair from her face.

"My lucky day…"

**Monday, April 11**

Sitting in a café, Joe put his mug down and sighed. He had sipped his coffee too slowly, trying to fill time, and now it was too cold to be worth finishing. Cate should have met him forty-five minutes ago. She had never yet been _this_ late for a date. Joe assessed the situation in his mind, drumming his fingers on the counter.

"Well, I've had to stand girls up before. I guess it's high time the tables were turned on me. There's bound to be a good reason why she couldn't make it…"

Nevertheless, he couldn't shake a worried feeling, as he eventually rose to leave the café and go home.

"Bad things have a way of happening to people I care about…"

0000000000

A car door slammed. Joe snapped upright in bed, instantly wary. There was a voice outside.

"Joe?"

"Cate?"

Before Joe had even stood up, she was in his trailer, and then in his arms.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…"

Joe wanted to tell her "I understand, stuff happens," but he couldn't speak. He couldn't speak because she was kissing him… and still kissing him, as she unbuttoned her blouse and unzipped her skirt. Soon, he didn't want to speak, as his words were clearly not what were required.

Tonight there was a near manic quality to her passion, as though she would not be fully satisfied unless their bodies fused into one. Not usually so vocal, this time she cried out to the night.

"Joe... Joe…Joe…"

Later, spooning, kissing the nape of her neck, Joe whispered, "What happened earlier tonight?"

Replying, she kept her face turned from his.

"I had a problem at work. It was a bad day… but I couldn't let it end without seeing you."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Yeah, just be you."

"That's too easy."

"It's nothing that I can't take care of myself. Don't worry about me."

"It's too late…" thought Joe, remembering his earlier uneasiness. Wrapping his arms more snugly around her waist, he nuzzled her hair, smiling as he mused drowsily.

"The mighty Condor, falling like a ton of bricks…"

**Sunday, April 17**

Lifted up into the nose of the God Phoenix, Joe exited the G2, made his way to the main deck, and took his seat.

"What are we looking at, Ken?"

"Dr. Nambu says that security at an ISO warehouse near here just sent out an emergency call that they're under attack from some kind of machine. It's bound to be a Galactor mecha."

We're nearly there, Ken," said Ryu, "Where do you want me to land?"

"Just hover over the place first. Let's see if we can get an idea of what we're dealing with."

"Man!" said Jinpei, "Look at the size of that hole in the roof!"

"Take us over that hole, Ryu, and bring it up on the screen, Jun, magnified."

"I'll be damned," said Joe, "There's a hole in the floor of the place too."

"You mean the mecha's escaped by tunneling underground?" groaned Jinpei, "How will we find it again?"

"Look again, squirt," replied Joe, "See the edges around the hole in the roof? Whatever that thing was, it came up from the ground and left through the roof."

"Joe's right," said Ken, "and that would explain why it was able to attack suddenly with no warning."

"Should I land, Ken?" asked Ryu, "Are you guys going in there?"

"I'm not sure that would accomplish anything now." Ken thought for a moment. "Joe, do a long range scan. Is there anything in the air, flying quickly away from this location?"

"I'm on it."

It only took Joe a couple minutes to make a find.

"Yes! It's not big but it's going mach two, coordinates F 73.

"Ryu, take us after it and close in."

Before Ryu could say "Roger," the warehouse beneath them exploded into a ball of flames, debris scattering upwards. The God Phoenix lurched and pitched, sending everyone sprawling out of their chairs.

"Shit!" yelled Ken, "What was that?"

On screen, it was apparent that nothing remained of the warehouse now except some burning chunks of rubble.

"That, my friend, was a trap set for us," growled Joe, "How much do you want to bet that those Galactor scumbags thought we'd be inside when it exploded?"

"Those bastards are getting _way_ too familiar with our ways!" fumed Ken, "Ryu, catch us up to that mecha."

"And I'll come up with an _unfamiliar_ way to hit it with bird missiles," said Joe grimly.

"Look at the screen, everyone," said Jun, a few minutes later, "There's the mecha."

"This one looks like a tadpole!" joked Jinpei, "Where do they get their ideas?"

"I dunno, I was thinking _sperm_, myself," added Ryu.

Jinpei hooted with laughter.

"Really, you two are _gross_," huffed Jun.

"It looks like target practice to me," said Joe, "Get us closer, Ryu."

Without warning, the mecha separated into two sections, now heading in opposite directions, but both moving away from the God Phoenix.

"What the hell?" groaned Ryu, "Ken, which one should I follow?"

Ken didn't answer.

"_Ken_! Pick one –heads or tails?"

"Follow the tail, Ryu. I'll go after the head in the G1."

"No, Ken!" cried Jun, "If you do that, you'll only have lasers and we'll only have the bullets from the G2 –we won't be able to fire any missiles. We have no idea what kind of weapons that head or tail could be equipped with, and after the explosion we just saw…"

Ken closed his eyes, seething with frustration.

"You're right, Jun. This is another trap. They're getting _too damned familiar _with our ways! Ryu, follow the head. Jun, you alert the UN to send fighter jets after the tail."

As it turned out, the head mecha could indeed fire missiles, but not quite as well as Joe. The head mecha went down.

0000000000

"Team," said Dr. Nambu, "This is what we know about today's attack on the ISO warehouse, and unfortunately, it isn't much."

"The warehouse was totally incinerated. We used that facility as a secure holding site for many things, from mundane to highly important. There's no way to tell, now, if Galactor stole anything and, if so, what they might have taken. I ordered an inspection of the wreckage of the head mecha that you shot down, but there is no evidence there of anything that might have been taken from the warehouse."

"The UN tells me that the tail mecha shot down one and damaged two UN fighters, and after that the others lost track of it in heavy rain. We don't know where it went or what it might have had on board. However, as far as I can tell, only about thirty minutes passed between when the mecha first attacked the warehouse, and when it left. That's not much time at all, and I suspect that somehow Galactor knew exactly what they wanted from that warehouse and didn't waste any time taking it and leaving, but we don't know what that was."

**Thursday, April 21**

Joe hung up the Snack J's phone, Cate's message replaying in his head.

"Joe, it's Cate. Something's come up at work, a deadline got moved and I just found out about it. I won't be able to see you tonight at all. I'm really sorry. I'll make it up to you."

He hadn't seen Cate since Monday, and he'd been looking forward to their date tonight all day. Sighing, Joe made his way to the bar.

"Hey, Jinpei, I'll take a refill on my coffee, okay?"

Ryu left the table where he had been sitting and approached Joe.

"Hey Joe, I got two tickets to the premiere tonight of that new sci-fi action flick –you know, the one where aliens in giant spaceships invade Earth and enslave everyone, until a band of unlikely heroes forms an underground resistance. I was gonna take Jinpei, but I found out its rating won't allow kids. You wanna go?"

"Yeah, and it sucks," muttered Jinpei, "_Me_, the Great Swallow, scourge of Galactor, and I can't even see a damned _movie_?"

Joe thought for a moment, and concluded that a movie might be preferable to sitting in his trailer, brooding.

"Okay, Ryu. You're on," he announced.

0000000000

Joe and Ryu stood at a downtown intersection, surrounded by fan boys, all eagerly arguing about the movie they had all just seen, waiting for the light to change.

"_Geeks_," thought Joe witheringly, "You have no clue what it's really like."

But now something was making them all turn and stare across the adjacent street, so Joe turned as well. Chez Jean-Pierre, Joe knew it by reputation alone; it was the city's most expensive restaurant.

A distinguished looking man, with immaculate hair and a suit that screamed _money_, was coming out of the restaurant, strutting down the stairs to an awaiting Mercedes convertible, with a valet hopping out and opening the car's doors. But it was the woman on his arm that drew the crowd's gaze; she was tall, slender, beautiful, elegantly sexy…

She was Cate.

Feeling paralyzed, Joe watched her smile coyly at something the man whispered in her ear, watched him lean over to kiss her neck possessively before driving the car off into the night.

He could dimly hear Ryu's voice, obscured by the pounding sensation in his head.

"La-di-da. I tell ya, some guys have just gotta show off, don't they?"

Joe didn't answer him, but Ryu was used to that.

"Hey, come on, Joe. The light's green."

Somehow, Joe regained the use of his muscles, managed to breath, managed to cross the street, managed to find his car. Back at his trailer, though, he could not manage to sleep.

He stared bleakly at the ceiling, as rain fell outside.

"No… no… no…"

**Friday, April 22**

"Is there something I should know?"

Cate had just walked out the Geo-Tek building, and she skidded to a startled halt as she heard Joe's voice behind her. In the waning light of the early evening, she hadn't noticed him in the shadows, leaning against the wall, arms folded across his chest.

"Joe! What are you doing here?"

"Is there something I should know?"

"I don't know what you mean, Joe," she said, seeming nervous and distracted. "Look, I don't have time for you right now, there's somewhere I need to be. I'm _really_ busy these days, don't you get it? I can't… Look, I'll try to see you later in the week, if I can."

"You're busy, I get it. Yet somehow you had time last night to leave Chez Jean-Pierre on the arm of some slick bastard old enough to be your father, with a car to match, you had time to smile at him, time to let him kiss you… Damn it, Cate! No man kisses a woman like that unless he's… unless…"

He struggled to mute the rawness in his voice.

"Is there something I should know?"

Cate's eyes had revealed alarm and then turmoil, but now they were blank as she stared at Joe. Her face became a stiff mask, her voice cold.

"Well, maybe it's for the best that you found out this way, Joe. I put off telling you, I mean, God, it's like kicking a puppy, telling you-"

"-what exactly are you telling me?" He stood as still as a statue, hands clenched at his sides, yet his words were now metal on metal.

Hers were daggers of ice.

"You're a nice guy and we had some fun, but you're a distraction I can't afford and you're holding me back. I've realized that there are things I want that _you_ will never be able to give me. I'm sorry Joe, but you're just not good enough for me, and I have to move on. I suggest you do the same. Stay _far_ away from me–"

Abruptly she turned, walking away as fast as she could without actually running.

Joe remained rooted in place as anger, grief and bewilderment struggled for control within him. Despite what he had seen last night, until this moment he had still been giving her the benefit of the doubt. He had clung to a hope that somehow he had misunderstood what he had seen, that there was a different explanation than the obvious one. Otherwise, everything he thought that he had with Cate was a lie. Otherwise, Joe the Condor had been caught off guard while vulnerable –blindsided, no less- and that was something that was_ never_ supposed to happen.

He felt sick.

0000000000

Jun walked into the Snack J. Having left Jinpei to run the place for the evening, she quickly surveyed the premises to assure herself that all was well. A handful of customers were lingering over drinks at the bar, but in a distant booth, his back to the room, sat Joe. He was slumped forward, using one hand to support his head, and there were several empty glasses at his table. With Jinpei nowhere in sight, Jun made a beeline for the kitchen.

"Why are you lurking back here?"

Jinpei jumped at the sound of Jun's voice, but then he turned and launched into a woeful tirade.

"Aw, Sis, give me a break! If I go back out there, Joe will see me and demand another scotch, and I really don't think he needs one, I mean if we got called out right now, the state he's in, Dr. Nambu would kill him if Ken didn't do it first, and the last one I gave him, I hinted that _maybe_ he should stop and he practically took my head off! He's in a really shitty mood, I'm not going anywhere near him again and–"

"Okay, okay, I get the picture," interrupted Jun, "I'll talk to him."

"You're the best, Sis," sighed a clearly relieved Jinpei, and as Jun left the kitchen, he couldn't resist adding,

"Just so you know though, he did pay for all his drinks, unlike _someone_ _else_ we know."

0000000000

Jun sat down in the booth, opposite Joe.

"Go away, Jun" he growled.

"This is _my_ place, I can sit wherever I like."

"Really, go away. I don't want to talk."

"Who said there had to be any talking? We'll just sit here, not talking. I won't ask why you're getting drunk and mean, because we're not talking. I won't ask why you're scaring Jinpei, because we're not talking. I won't ask what her name is, or what she looks like, or how you met her or why she dumped you, because we're not talking. Nope, no one's talking here."

"Damn," groaned Joe, his face in his hands, "Is it that obvious?"

"Only to highly intelligent and perceptive women who have known you for a long time."

"Ah, so only to one person then -I guess it could be worse."

"Come on, Joe. This job of ours screws with all our lives. I know what it's like, all the stress, the secrets, the unexplainable absences… it kills relationships, and it's obvious to me that this one must have really meant a lot to you."

"Yeah, but this one, she didn't dump me because I had weird bruises, or because I stood her up or took off in the middle of a date."

He lifted his head to face Jun.

"It was because I live in a camp trailer instead of hanging out in five-star restaurants, wearing designer suits, and getting around in a Mercedes."

"God, Joe, if she's that superficial, aren't you better off without her?"

"But that's just it!" snapped Joe, slamming his hand on the table, "She wasn't like that! She wasn't some gold digger. She worked hard. She was determined to make her own way… Okay, yeah, she was a little snot in some ways, she ragged on me about living like a bum, but she seemed… strong and…_loyal_. Call me an idiot, but I never once thought she'd jump at the first guy to flash a wad of cash at her. God, I actually thought she really liked me."

He laughed, slowly and bitterly.

"It makes me sick. How can I be this weak, this pathetic?"

At this, Jun sat up abruptly and leaned across the table.

"It's not even remotely pathetic, Joe Asakura! It means you're still a human being, in spite of all the death and violence we have to deal with. It means you're brave, not weak. If the day ever comes that none of us has any feelings left to hurt, then I hope that's the day we die! You have nothing to be ashamed of, Joe! I wish Ken-"

She stopped herself in alarm, realizing what she was about to say. There was an awkward pause, until Joe reached across the table to take her hand in his.

"Welcome to pathetic-land, population two."

"Oh Joe," she whispered, lifting his hand briefly to her lips, "It won't always be this way. I have to believe that once we win this damned war, it'll be different, we'll be able to have the things we want, normal lives, all of it."

"Yeah," replied Joe softly, "that'll be nice."

They continued to sit there, in silence.

"Jun," said Joe, eventually, "Since we're not talking, I won't tell you that you're a good friend."

**Wednesday, May 11**

Dr. Nambu sat in his office at the Crescent Base, frowning in concentration at the reports spread out on the desk before him. Without warning, the viewscreen on the wall buzzed and lit up, revealing the main deck of the God Phoenix, but only Joe was visible and he was in Ryu's chair. Dark stains covered his birdstyle.

"Joe! What's going on? Where are the others?"

"What's happening," snarled Joe, "is that there were no hostages needing rescue! Only dead bodies and a trap for us! Fucking Galactor scum! We barely got out of there, and Jun, Jinpei and Ryu are hurt _bad_, especially Jun!"

"Dear God, what-"

"-they had bullets that could pierce right through our birdstyles, like they weren't even there–"

"What? That's not possible -"

"No, it's fucking well possible! It happened! Ken's got them in the back room and he's doing what he can. Ryu might be helping him some, but I'm aiming for the Crescent Base at mach five and we'll be there in ten minutes and you'd better alert the med team that Ryu's been hit in the arm and shoulder, Jinpei in the abdomen and Jun in the chest and abdomen… She's really bad, she's lost a lot of blood and she's not conscious… Ryu says she was trying to protect Jinpei and-"

Joe closed his eyes, hands clenched in front of him, trying to steady his breathing.

"Ken and I were in a different area, looking for the control room, when it happened. Ryu managed to alert us. We found him running down a corridor carrying Jinpei _and_ Jun. Yeah, he can carry Jinpei even with a fucked up arm! But the only reason any of us are still alive is that the goons in pursuit only had regular ammo by that time. I carried Jun the rest of the way, and Ken dealt with the goons and set explosive charges. That base is _gone_."

The Doctor strove to collect himself in the face of this inexplicable disaster.

"Listen, Joe, you and Ken are doing all the right things. Keep at it, and I'll alert everyone that you're incoming stat, and meet you in the med ward."

"Roger, G2 out."

The screen went dark. Nambu stood up and grabbed his phone.

**Thursday, May 12**

Ken sat hunched forward on a chair at Jun's bedside, holding on to her hand with both of his own, as if to keep her from leaving. An oppressive silence filled the small, painfully white and sterile room, broken only by the monotonous beep of the heart monitor. She was still unconscious, and now, intubated.

"Joe, I'm not sure I can cope with this… not Jun… I took it for granted she'd always be here… that later there'd be time… we'd have time… Oh God, it was so close… so much blood, she really could have died and I'd have never had a chance to tell her… anything."

Joe moved away from the wall where he had been leaning, towards Ken. He put an arm around Ken's shoulder and gave him a squeeze.

"_Carpe Diem_, my brother, haven't our lives taught us that?"

Ken continued to stare vacantly at Jun's hand.

"Look, we know how strong Jun is. She's going to pull through –you heard the surgeons. You will get your day, and you can seize it. But right now, Nambu's here and we have to go talk to him. Come on, you have to let her go. She's going to be okay, Ken, and _we_ need to see about punishing the bastards that did this!"

That lit a spark in Ken's eyes. He released Jun's hand.

"Yes, revenge is the best answer, Ken. It works for me. Now off we go."

0000000000

"Thank you for meeting with me, Ken, Joe. This has been a truly dreadful day for the Science Ninja Team, but let me assure you, what the surgeons said is true. Ryu, Jinpei and Jun will all make full recoveries. But it was _much_ too close, especially for Jun, and it will be many weeks before all five of you can function as a team again. Until I say otherwise, the team consists of you two. In an extreme emergency, I will let Ryu fly missions as long as he stays on the God Phoenix."

"Dr. Nambu, have you been able to examine those bullets? _What_ were those bullets?"

Dr. Nambu sighed.

"Yes, Ken, I was able to recover and examine some of the bullets. This is where the story gets disturbing, and complicated."

"What do you mean?" asked Joe.

"Let me explain from the beginning. First, the bullets are made of Omniscutum."

"What the hell is Omniscutum?"

"Ken,_ I_ know my Latin. It's something like 'a shield against everything,' isn't it, Doctor?"

"Very good, Joe. Omniscutum is a recently developed and still fairly experimental alloy. Now, as far as you two know, what is the hardest substance there is?"

"Diamonds."

"_Crystallized carbon_, Joe. _I_ know my geological terms."

"Have either of you ever wondered why the entire God Phoenix isn't coated with crystallized carbon? Wouldn't that stop Galactor missiles effectively?"

"It would be totally unfeasible! It would never mold correctly to the God Phoenix's shape! It would crack every time the underlying metal expanded with heat-"

"And, it would weigh it down, like a giant brick."

"You are both correct. However, Omniscutum solves both these problems. It is equally hard but it is, in comparison, light and malleable. And now I see that it has properties that I never anticipated…"

"Like the ability to pierce birdstyle fabric? Are you saying, Doctor, that the ISO developed this stuff? How the hell did Galactor get it then?"

"Oh, Ken, as I said, it's complicated. Where to begin… Okay, about nine months ago I was approached by the research director from a corporation, based in Utoland, called Geo-Tek."

Joe's eyes widened for an instant, but he remained silent, listening intently.

"Geo-Tek," continued Nambu, "specializes in mineral and mining technology, among other things. It's a private business, operating for profit. However, a few Geo-Tek scientists had made some very interesting, largely theoretical, breakthroughs. There is an extremely rare ore, known as Corundium, so rare that there is only one known location in the world where it can be mined. This location is in Inderia."

"Were we just there recently?"

"Very good, Ken. Yes, that transport plane that I asked you to escort was carrying the last amount of Corundium that was discovered at that Inderian mine. We don't think there is any more to be found there. The importance of this Corundium is that it contains small amounts of an _extremely_ rare element, one that cannot be synthesized, called Adamaxium.

Adamaxium is, in turn, the key ingredient in a theoretical alloy that a few Geo-Tek scientists were convinced they could manufacture for real. However, the funding and resources required for an experimental project on their anticipated scale were beyond what Geo-Tek could provide. That is why they chose to approach the ISO, to approach me.

They were interested in trying to manufacture this theoretical alloy, which came to be called Omniscutum, to coat the drills and blades of mining equipment and dramatically increase their performance and longevity. I, in turn, was greatly interested in the possibility that Omniscutum could be used as armor for the God Phoenix.

We never expected to be able to produce very much Omniscutum. Adamaxium is the limiting component; there simply is not very much of it to be had. Additionally, the manufacturing process for Omniscutum is very complicated and requires a large amount of very specialized smelting, annealing and forging equipment.

There are many intermediate stages, where the various substances involved are in highly unstable forms, and currently the process fails twice as often as it succeeds, although an improved success rate is expected with more practice. At any rate, I agreed to throw ISO resources behind this project, and provide some of our own scientists for the work. In return, I was promised that the project would remain classified secret at Geo-Tek, and that I would be allocated a major share of any Omniscutum that could be produced. They started work around the beginning of this year."

Nambu removed a small glass canister from his desk, containing a shiny, grayish-purple lump of metal roughly the size of a baseball, and set it before Ken and Joe.

"Only as recently as the middle of March was the first successful production of stable Omniscutum accomplished, and I was given this sample about a month ago. Until yesterday, I believed that all the Omniscutum that had so far been successfully produced, other than what may be at the manufacturing facility, is what I have right here in front of you. Clearly this is not the case. Somehow, Galactor has learned about the Omniscutum project, which we codenamed Project Omicron, and they have made it for themselves.

Do you remember that ISO warehouse that was destroyed by Galactor? One of the items stored there was the remaining supply of Corundium, other than what is at Project Omicron's secret manufacturing facility. I think that we can now safely assume that what Galactor took from that warehouse, before they destroyed it, was the Corundium, and it must have been in the section of the mecha that eluded the UN fighters and escaped that day.

Naturally, Galactor, with its mission of evil, would devise a plan to try to use Omniscutum, with its unique properties, as material for bullets to use against the Science Ninja Team. They must be aware by now that normal bullets only cause you bruising or non-penetrating damage. Someone, probably Katse himself, must have realized that Omniscutum bullets might succeed where regular bullets fail.

It is very likely, however, that your birdstyles do, to some extent, mute the impact of the Omniscutum bullets, but clearly, they cannot do enough to prevent serious or fatal injuries. Research will have to be done to strengthen your birdstyles against this new threat, but this won't happen quickly, or easily."

Ken and Joe had listened in silence to Dr. Nambu's explanation in silence, but now they had questions.

Ken was first.

"Doctor, we _have_ to find out how Galactor got Omniscutum. If there's a spy or a traitor at Geo-Tek or, God forbid, at the ISO, helping Galactor, then we need to find and stop them immediately! Just how tight was the security on this Project Omicron anyway? Could someone have been careless and _unintentionally_ made information available to Galactor?"

"That's a good assessment of the possibilities, Ken. Personally, I can vouch for the quality of Project Omicron's security as far as the ISO is concerned, as well as for the integrity of the few ISO scientists involved in the manufacturing work. In fact, I contacted them earlier today. They said there are no problems to report at their end. I told them to continue with their work and to keep me informed of any developments or strange occurrences. No, I strongly suspect that the problem originates on Geo-Tek's side. The first person to contact me from Geo-Tek, the research director, is named Victor Crandall. My authority within the ISO and the UN, when I choose to use it, is such that I can get access to many highly secured global information databases, if I deem it necessary-"

"_Deem_ away, Doctor!"

"Yes, Joe, I did. Shortly before I called you in here, I received a report that a Swiss bank account that is linked to Victor Crandall received an anonymous, untraceable deposit of two million dollars, on April 1st."

"It looks like we've got our rat, then. I'm going to break his-"

"-that would appear to be so. He had struck me as someone more interested in profit than in the advancement of science. You and Ken will go _question_ him immediately. He should be at Geo-Tek's main office building in downtown Utoland. See what you can get out of him and, if necessary, apprehend him –I'll back you on any action you, Ken, think is required to get to the bottom of this catastrophe."

0000000000

"Secrecy be damned," declared Ken. "We need answers _now_."

So, Ken and Joe walked right through the main entrance of the Geo-Tek building, in birdstyle, drawing gasps and stares from everyone in the lobby. They homed in on a receptionist behind a desk, who looked torn between squealing with excitement and fainting in terror.

"Which floor is research and development?"

"Fifteenth," she managed, finally, to blurt out.

"Elevators?"

"They're around to the left, over there," she whispered, gesturing feebly.

"Thank you, you've been most helpful."

And they were gone.

The fifteenth floor, and there was yet another receptionist.

"We're here to see Crandall. Where is he?"

This one didn't even try to speak, she merely pointed.

Their destination was at the end of a hallway. They paused outside an office labeled "Victor Crandall, PhD, VP Research & Development –Special Projects."

If Cate was anywhere in the building or on this floor they hadn't encountered her –much to Joe's relief. It was still too painful to think about her; the last thing he wanted to do was see her.

"Not that she'd recognize me in birdstyle," he thought.

He forced his thoughts back to the matter at hand.

"Am I the good cop or the bad cop here, Ken?"

"The _good_ cop –Nambu wants us to question him, not to assault him. _I'll_ decide if any force is necessary. Here we go-"

He kicked the door in. Victor Crandall, behind his desk, looked up in disbelief.

He looked more like a news anchorman than a scientist.

He was the same man that Joe had seen leaving Chez Jean-Pierre with Cate.

0000000000

Ken was clearly losing his patience with Crandall, with his haughty insistence that he was not in any way at fault, and his snide suggestion that Dr. Nambu must be trying to cover up ISO incompetence.

It was clear to Joe that Ken was thinking about Jun.

"I'm not going to ask you again!" Ken grabbed Crandall's chin, yanking his head up, "How did Galactor get Omniscutum!"

"Come on," said Joe, in a kinder tone, "work with us here. We've got to figure this out. You must know something that could help us."

Crandall was angry.

"I have no idea how they learned anything about the project! And do not touch me!"

Ken struck him, full across the face, with the back of his hand.

"That's bullshit! How do you explain the two million dollars that recently appeared in a Swiss bank account that belongs to you?"

Now Crandall looked genuinely frightened.

"Don't be scared," said Joe, "If you've gotten in too deep, we can still help you, keep you safe, but you've got to cooperate and tell us what you know."

"That money, it's got nothing to do with Omniscutum or Galactor! You have to believe me! I swear to God-"

Ken hit him again.

"Okay! Okay, it was a bribe… But not from Galactor! It was a bribe from a… mining company, to give them an exclusive contract to do all of Geo-Tek's field projects in Ameris. It had _nothing_ to do with Galactor!" He was almost wailing.

Joe was having trouble controlling himself. If Ken was thinking of Jun in the hospital, every time Joe looked at Crandall, all he could see was the man that had kissed Cate's neck and it made him want to hurt him too.

"Good cop, my ass," he thought.

Joe moved behind the desk, grabbed Crandall in a chokehold and began banging his head against the desk, repeatedly.

"Guess what?" Whack! "We don't believe you–" Whack! "and I'm going to turn your pretty face–" Whack! "into pulp if you don't start–" Whack! "spilling the truth!"

Whack! Crandall's nose cracked audibly and blood came out his nostrils.

"Please," he moaned, "I'm not lying–"

Joe grabbed Crandall's head for another go, only to be stopped by Ken.

"Fuck, Joe, don't _kill_ him! … I think he might actually be telling us the truth."

"Okay, fine! He's not the leak!" He threw Crandall back into his chair.

"Or he doesn't _know_ he's the leak." Ken began looking all around the room.

"Is there anything in here that's fairly new?" he demanded, "Anything you didn't bring in yourself?

Crandall was slumped forward, breathing rapidly and holding a bloody handkerchief over his nose. He looked desperately around his office, now anxious to comply.

"My phone," he gasped, "A tech came in and replaced it with a new one back in early March –said it was part of a systems upgrade."

Joe picked the phone up from the desk, yanking the wire out of the wall, and hurled it at the door. Its casing shattered, and its components scattered across the floor. A small, orb-like metal object, with a blinking red light and dangling wires, rolled near Ken's foot.

"A bug!" Ken shouted, "Your office has been bugged this whole time?"

He stomped down with his heel, crushing it flat. The red light stopped blinking.

"Idiot! Is this your idea of how to maintain security for classified research projects? You will _never_ see a penny of ISO funding, ever again!

If he had looked frightened before, now Crandall looked terrified.

"I never discussed any details about Project Omicron here in my office, _never_! The scientists would only discuss it face to face at their secret facility."

"You never once said 'Project Omicron' while here in your office? Never said _anything _to suggest it might be something big, something really important?"

"No!"

Joe, silent during this exchange, moved towards Crandall.

"Okay! God, maybe! Maybe I might have said the words! … said something that made it sound important!"

"So," said Joe, still looking threatening, "Galactor learned of Project Omicron's existence thanks to you, asshole."

"Yeah," said Ken, "But they didn't learn the complete formula and manufacturing process for Omniscutum from that bug inside the phone. There's still something we're missing."

Ken turned to Crandall. "You mentioned the scientists' secret facility. Dr. Nambu also mentioned a secret manufacturing facility where the Geo-Tek and ISO scientists do their work on Project Omicron."

"Right," added Joe, "and he also said he'd just talked to them and everything was fine. Are you thinking what I'm thinking, that maybe that might not really be the case?"

"You know where this secret location is, Crandall?"

"Yes."

"Did you ever speak this bit of information out loud, in this office?"

"No!" He was practically sobbing now, "I swear on everything that is holy that I _never_ did that! Here or anywhere! There's nothing in this office, even on this computer, which would reveal the facility's location."

"Not even on the computer?"

"I keep the Project Omicron files on an off-network computer that's at my house."

"Well, you'll give the location to us now. We need to check that place out."

There was nothing Crandall wanted more eagerly, at that moment, than for them to leave.

"There's an old foundry on the far eastern edge of the harbor, with a pier. It's been closed and boarded up for years, or at least that's how it looks from the outside. When the ISO agreed to build all the necessary experimental manufacturing equipment for Project Omicron, they used that place to house it all. They said it would attract less attention than building a new facility, and secrecy was imperative. The scientists stay there round the clock, so there's no sign of any comings and goings."

0000000000

It was dark as they approached the foundry on foot. Ken, realizing that Joe was no longer walking behind him, turned and saw Joe standing still, staring at a lone, small car in the parking lot.

"Come on –it's just an abandoned car. From the look of it, it probably died ages ago."

Still, Joe didn't move. He felt as if all the blood had drained from his face and he seemed to have lost his voice.

"Look, tomorrow you can tow it out of here and tinker with it all you like. Now move!"

Finally, Joe turned abruptly and followed Ken towards a small side-entrance door, barely visible in the darkness.

"No," he thought, "That car runs just fine. I fixed it myself."

Approaching the side door, Joe recovered his voice.

"I've got a bad, bad feeling about this place."

"Feeling noted. We'll be extra vigilant. Now is there anything on that gun of yours that can get this door open –without any explosions?"

"Yeah, I can do it."

0000000000

Once inside, they found themselves walking long corridors in silence, pausing to peer into rooms devoid of people. The place was seemingly deserted. Finally approaching a closed door at the end of a corridor, they heard a voice from the other side. Even muffled by a door, Joe recognized the speaker; it was a voice that never failed to make his skin crawl and his pulse race. Berg Katse.

Ken gestured silently. Stay. Listen.

"You are in no position to make any demands."

"You said you wanted information on a Project Omicron and I got you information, the very next day! That was a month ago!"

Joe knew the second voice as well; he didn't want to believe it, but he knew it was Cate's voice. _Cate_ had put Omniscutum in Galactor's hands? Realizing now the full scope of her treachery, it felt like a knife in his gut.

"Yes," sneered Katse, "You found out there was some ore stored at an ISO warehouse that had something to do with the project. That wasn't a very useful secret!"

"I was doing the best I could! I–"

"-and it took you ten days after that to find out about _this_ location. You aren't a very efficient agent. And now you tell me that you've quit your job at Geo-Tek? Guess what? I happen to know that Gatchaman and the Condor have just paid a nasty visit to your ex-boss's office. They're looking for the leak at Geo-Tek. They'll figure it out sooner or later and _you_, my dear, will be history. So, you see, I no longer have any use for either one of you. Our work here is nearly complete, and I think your bodies will make a nice parting gift for them to find. Be grateful I even let you see each other one last time!"

There was a sound of machine guns being readied.

Joe carefully eased the door open a fraction of an inch and peered inside. Ken knelt, and did the same. In the center of the room stood Cate, with a young man that Joe had never seen before. Facing them, were six Galactor goons, armed and prepared to shoot. There was a very high ceiling and a second-level balcony jutted into the room. It was there that Katse stood, surveying the scene below.

"Do you have _any_ idea what I had to do to steal information about this location? The price I had to pay!" Cate's voice was choked with bitterness.

"Don't know, don't care," mocked Katse, "Galactor is a results-driven operation."

"Fine! Kill me then, any way you like! Just let him go! _Please_!"

"Nah, it's more fun this way. Okay, boys, ready-aim-and-fire!"

Joe burst into the room, followed an instant later by Ken.

It was the work of seconds to take out six goons, but suddenly a shot rang out and Ken screamed in pain as a line of scarlet blossomed across his ribs. Katse, up above, yelled exultantly.

"Yes! I've got more of those special bullets you know and love, just for a moment like this!"

He aimed at Ken again.

"Never!" screamed Ken.

Katse fired. In a blur of speed, clutching his ribs with his right hand, Ken grabbed the nearest captive, the man, and threw him towards an open door underneath the balcony. Then he ran through the door himself, dragging the man with him.

Katse cursed, and turned on the Condor. Joe grabbed Cate and leapt back through the door he had entered from, just as another shot rang out. Yanking her behind him, he ran down the long corridor.

"Why are you saving me?" she gasped.

"If Katse wants you dead, then I want you alive -nothing more than that."

He jerked her arm roughly, but then released it.

"Run as fast as you can, and follow me! I know a way out!"

Running desperately, she followed the Condor, trying to keep up. Ahead, the corridor turned ninety degrees to the left. The Condor reached the corner several feet ahead of her, and turned left, but suddenly he froze.

"Time to die, Condor!" screamed Katse's voice, "I won't miss again!"

The time it took for Katse to speak was the time it took for Cate to close the distance between herself and the Condor, to collide with the Condor, as Katse, merely ten feet to the left, fired his gun.

Cate dropped to the floor, beside the wall.

Katse fired again, but this time a dull click was the only result.

"Damn it all to hell!" shrieked Katse in fury.

The Condor emitted a cold chuckle.

"Can't keep count of your ammo, Katse? That's a novice's mistake. It'll be your last mistake."

Weaponless, and facing a Condor who was radiating murderous intent, Katse turned to flee. As Joe lunged to pursue him, reaching for his shuriken, there was a small cry from the vicinity of his feet.

"Wait!"

Halted by an instant of indecision, Joe turned and glanced down at Cate, still sprawled on the floor. He saw the bloodstain growing across her waist, the pool spreading on the floor beneath her.

"No! Oh no!"

Joe dropped to his knees beside her, as the sound of Katse's feet receded.

"Not again, Oh please, God, not this!"

Cate stared up at him with glassy eyes.

"Please, I need you to give someone a message, please."

"I'll get you to a hospital. No time for messages!"

He tried to find the wound, tried to staunch it with his gloves. But there was too much blood, leaving her too quickly.

"Mother of God!" his mind raced frantically, "Did the bullet go right through her?"

"Stop," she gasped weakly, "It's over for me. I can't feel my legs… won't have much time."

"_Listen_," she implored. Her breathing shallow, she struggled to continue with a fading voice.

"At Utoland's track, there's a race car driver named Joe Asakura… tell him that I love him… tell him that I only slept with Victor to distract him… and get close enough…to be able to look at files on his computer… at his house… worst three days of my life… I didn't want to… but they'd kidnapped my brother… said they'd kill him if I didn't turn spy for them at Geo-Tek… said they were watching me… afraid they'd get Joe too… _tell him I love him_… tell him I'm sorry… I said terrible things to him… all lies…"

While she spoke he was unable to respond, nearly unable to breathe. As the meaning of her words sank in, Joe made a decision that, really, was not a decision at all. He lifted her onto his lap, cradling her head. She stared up at him, not moving. While looking down at her, with his free hand he started to ease off his helmet.

"Cate, I _am_ Joe, it's me, I'm here, I'm Joe."

But she was dead.

He let go of his helmet.

He continued to hold her.

"I love you too," he whispered.

He was still holding her when Ken appeared, sporting a makeshift bandage around his ribs, and accompanied by the man he had rescued earlier.

The man cried out at the sight of Cate. The man was now on the floor in front of them, sobbing over her body.

"Catie, no, no, it should have been me, not you!"

He was still holding her while Ken stared in dismay.

He was still holding her while Ken explained how things stood.

"After we split up, I encountered some more goons -dead goons now- and a room where the scientists were being held captive. They told me Galactor covertly invaded and took over this place the night of April 23rd. They were forced at gunpoint to explain Project Omicron, and then to keep manufacturing Omniscutum for Galactor. They were told their families, on the outside, would be killed if they didn't cooperate. Later, Galactor brought the supply of Corundium they'd stolen from the ISO warehouse here as well."

"The scientists were also forced to pretend everything was normal if calls came in from Dr. Nambu, or if Crandall were to visit. They just completed a successful batch of Omniscutum yesterday, their largest one yet. From what I can tell, Katse had realized that Galactor wasn't going to be able to remain here undetected by the ISO for too much longer, and they were planning to pull out tonight, taking the scientists, the remaining Corundium, and the Omniscutum with them. Thank God we got here when we did."

"There's no sign of Katse anywhere. The scientists said that Galactor first invaded this place from the direction of the pier. There must have been some kind of sub hidden there, and the bastard must have used it now to escape."

Finally Joe stirred. Still holding Cate, he looked up, and at the other man.

"Are you her brother?"

He nodded, still staring at Cate, still shaking.

"She left you a message. She asked you to look after your mother."

For a moment, the man didn't move. Then he touched Cate's face.

"Catie…" he whispered, "This time I won't let you down, Catie."

"You'd better not," said Joe, quietly but with a vehemence that startled Ken.

"Who is she, Joe?" he asked with a confused frown, "Did you know her?"

"She was Crandall's assistant at Geo-Tek. She was the leak. Galactor said they'd kill this guy here, her brother, if she didn't do it."

"Fucking Galactor does it again," muttered Ken, "Come on, Joe. Let her go… You've got to let her go."

**Tuesday, June 21**

It wasn't hard to find the right grave. This one had freshly turned earth, and the flowers resting on it were only mostly wilted. Joe added his own bouquet, and then sat down on the nearby grass. The sun was intense, so he closed his eyes…

Yes… Here… Here in this quiet place, embraced by warmth and light, knowing she was close, he could finally let it happen… he could unclench his mind and let the good memories come flowing out, let himself feel them again…

Let her go.

0000000000

His bracelet beeped.

"This is G3 calling G2."

"G2 here, is everything okay?"

"It's all good. I'm closing the Snack J early and Jinpei and I going to the beach. Ken and Ryu both said they'll meet us there. You should come too. It'll be fun and I haven't seen you in _weeks_."

"Not my fault you were asleep every time I came to the med ward."

Her voice softened, "I know. Ken would tell me in the morning when you'd been there at night."

"And I promised Jinpei I'd keep the Snack J open and running until you got back."

Jun chuckled. "I'm grateful in more ways than you realize. Sometimes I think the only reason Ken stayed at the Crescent Base the whole time I was there was because he knew he wouldn't get any free meals under your management."

Joe laughed. "You're too good for that bum, you know that, right?"

"None of that kind of talk, do you hear me? Now report to the beach! G3 out."

"Roger! G2 out."

Joe began walking back to his car, pausing to wipe sweat off his forehead.

"Good day for the beach," he thought, "It is the first day of summer, after all."


End file.
